Iloilo farmers benefit from EPAHP program

By Lilibeth French

Some 25 farmers of Leon Confed Farmer Daily Association (LECOFADA) and Calinog Farmers Agriculture Cooperative (CAFAGRICOOP) benefited from the pilot project Kabuhayan Gatasang Kalabaw under the Enhanced Partnership Against Hunger and Poverty (EPAHP) program.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is among the lead agencies that implement the EPAHP, a convergence effort under the Program Convergence Budget. Other partner national government agencies are the Department of Agriculture-Philippine Carabao Center (DA-PCC), the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), and the Commission on Population and Development (POPCOM).

As a convergence effort, DSWD 6 reported that the DA-PCC provided 25 buffaloes while under its Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP) a total of P375,000 or P15,000 was released each to the same beneficiaries as their seed capital fund.

DTI will also be furnishing the group with an upgraded Shared Service Facility while POPCOM will be extending their Family Planning services to all the participants as a strategic measure to mitigate hunger and poverty towards food security, according to DSWD 6.

Region VI was among the three regions chosen to implement the pilot project aimed at increasing milk production while

the Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) should work towards being a service provider to institutional feeding programs of the government.

The approval of the Amended Section 53.12 of Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act No. 9184 and the Guidelines for the Conduct of Community Participation in Procurement will enable the direct purchase of government agencies and LGU from local Farmers and local Fisherfolks thereby assuring them of a market and sustainability.

Present during the turn-over ceremony were PCC Center Director Arn D. Granada and Development Coordinator Janice Cuaresma, DSWD’s SLP Provincial Coordinator Anthony Laruan and Regional Special Projects Focal Jazer P. Miranda; DTI Provincial Director Judith P. Degala, Business Consultant RL Marco and Local Government Units of Bingawan, Lambunao, Calinog, and Leon. (PIA6-Iloilo/Photo courtesy of DSWD-6)